Growing at just over 7%, 2016 was a very good year for the US consulting market—even if it wasn’t quite as good as the year that preceded it. The small drop in growth relative to 2015 can be largely attributed to a mid-year wave of uncertainty, which had some clients shifting into wait-and-see mode over the summer and into the autumn. Some of that uncertainty was anticipated: We readily predicted the market would slow a bit as clients waited out the results of the 2016 elections, and indeed this came to pass. But one major driver of uncertainty was largely unforeseen, as the Brexit vote surprised US consulting clients just as much as it surprised everyone else. Following the shock referendum result, some US clients took a bit of a pause as they waited for some clarity around what it all meant.

Of course, we’re all still waiting on that clarity on Brexit, and it’s not like the US political scene calmed down much after the election. But it seems clients adjust to a “new normal” a lot faster these days, and by year’s end, the market was performing at full steam once again. So far, 2017 shows no signs of client hesitancy, and so barring any further major unforeseen events, we’re predicting another strong year.